So I have been playing catch-up BIG TIME with my backlog of Trip Reports...and the best 3 are yet to come!!

This is one of them...and it will be followed by 2 AWESOME Kgalagadi reports which you don't want to miss out on!

As has become tradition for us, we shirked the temptation to go to the "circus" (South of Skukuza) and the "zoo" (Skukuza to Letaba) and instead opted to head towards what I consider to be the real Kruger, the last vestiges of what once was...the NORTH (ie north of Letaba)...where you can still feel "on your own" and enjoy the odd special sighting without traffic jams and some folks who don't respect the gift that Kruger is

On this trip we took along our 6-month old daughter (start them young, I say!) so we had our fair share of challenges...

Day 1: Punda Maria

We had slept over the previous night at friends in Polokwane (Pietersburg), so on this morning it was onto the N1 and towards Louis Trichardt and eventually we entered the Punda Maria gate at about noon. We were in the Kruger! It had been almost 2 years since our first proper visit (I don't count day visits when we might be in the area of White River or Graskop - I mean proper staying in the Kruger for more than 2 nights).

We were greeted by these guys before we reached Punda Maria camp:

We checked in and unpacked into our chalet...and after a short afternoon nap we got back into the SUV and I was ready for some proper Kruger photography!

We had decided to only drive the Mahonie loop - a favourite!

What's a visit to Kruger without the Hornbills?

Can anyone help me with this LBJ? Looks like some kind of Lark?

We came across quite a large herd of buffalo...in thick bush...

And our first kudu...

Around a bend I was surprised by a herd of elephants who were about to cross the road!! I went past them quickly and stopped for a photo. This female was quite agitated with me... (Luckily I know a mock-charge by now)

It was clear why - she was protecting this little one.

Shortly before turning back on the main road to Punda, we came across our first Sharpe's Grysbok!! It was already getting dark so light was poor in the dense bush where this guy was lurking...plus I had the wrong shutter speed dialed in an underexposed the shot totally

Fantastic pics as always, Morkel. Your lbj is a cisticola - Johan's bird ID challenge has taught me that much [I hope], but after that ???My best guess is a neddicky but I'm sure one of the experts will soon put me right.

Thanks so much for the kind compliments, and welcome to all the new travellers on board!

Day 2: Punda Maria

We pushed on to the waterhole before you join up with the main Shingwedzi-Babalala-Pafuri road. (Can't find my Kruger map so excuse the omission of some road names and waterhole names )

An emerald spotted dove checked things out:

A herd of Nyala were drinking in the muddy waters, and they were nervous. Being the photographer that I am, I couldn't help but hope that something was lurking in the bushes or the mud

Wading in deep...

I saw something move in the mud!!! Crocodile???

No...just some barbels (catfish)...

Mom and daughter braving the mud together...

They are such beautiful antelopes. Their drinking session ended without incident, and they sauntered back into the Mopani forest.

We turned back. It was time for breakfast and my daughter was getting tired of the car seat

These 2 snake eagles soared overhead...

As we passed the Mahonie turnoff close to Punda, I saw something in the road...

LIONS! CUBS!

(misfired focus on this one! )

We thought we might have stumbled onto the resident pride...but it seems this was only a trio of solo cubs! And they were looking quite think and sickly

They ventured off into the thick bush. We found out later that they were growing up alone and their mom had died before she could re-introduce them to the pride. The Park Ranger was actually on the lookout for them.

Anyway, we pushed on back to camp, had a nice brunch and took some siesta time before our afternoon drive...

On our afternoon drive we went out to Klopperfontein Dam via the dirt road from Punda and looped around on the tar road back to camp.

Straight out of camp - Duiker

This Yellow Hornbill provided some entertainment...

A herd of zebras came down to drink at Klopperfontein...

And this big boy was browsing close by...

Stopped by the roadside for this Fork-tailed Drongo...

And a couple of Fish Eagles were perched over the dam with the catfish where the nyala were...you could see that they had eaten...those catfish (barbels) were very exposed in the shallow mud. We listened to the eagles calling that most beautiful of calls for a few minutes before the clock prompted us to get moving to make gate-closing time...

Shortly before camp we stopped for some young impalas:

...and the day would not end well if we did not see another Sharpe's Grysbok!!

(for those that know their photography terms, these last antelope images were all taken after sunset using ISO-6400! love my D3s! )

Thank you so much for the kind wishes, everyone. My son was born healthy and weighed 3.23kg at birth...We brought him home today, an amazing experience and our 18-month old daughter doesn't seem too fazed for now...

Day 3: Punda Maria

More on the road to Pafuri...

These 2 boys came towards the river for a drink.

There were many vultures soaring about and perching in a tree, but some ways into the bush...

Another monkey...

Some crocs along the Levhuvhu river...

Some help needed on this ID - I have it as an African Hawk Eagle...twitchers?? (my bird book is missing )

We were scheduled to book in at Shingwedzi today, but I told my wife she can sleep late with the little one, and I shot off for a quick trip up to Pafuri. I wanted to get there in good light and look for leopards (having spoken with one of the private lodge guides in Punda the previous afternoon about the amount of leopards now active there). So I would only stop for 'special' sightings along the way, and drive at the speed limits to ensure I get there in good light...and I also needed to get back in order to check out in time.

First off, on the S60 gravel road linking Punda with the H1-8 up to Pafuri...hyenas! And a giraffe carcass some way into the bush that STANK!

It was still before sunrise...

Next up - a buffalo dagga boy close to the road...with a passenger!

I was about to push on from the buffalo when I spotted movement in the bush a little further on...

ELAND!!!!

My first proper Eland sighting in over 20 years in Kruger. And they were being typically Eland...moving/trotting away...

Here are the only half-decent shots I got...light was sweet!

I pushed on...

Love these Baobabs as you move north!

I took the S64 Nyala loop again...what a tranquil place!

This ellie was feeding...

And a duiker...

I couldn't go further! An elephant had pushed over a tree, blocking the road...I turned around to head to the Pafuri side...

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